Bang Bang Sauce

Brian and I tried Bonefish Grill one of the newer restos in town a few months ago and really loved the food. I was completely amazed that Brian liked the restaurant because it is primarily a seafood joint. They offer great steaks, though, which is nice because then Brian has something that he can select from the menu. The two times that we have dined there, everything has been deliciously prepared. We have no complaints.

I was so impressed that I told my coworkers about the place. Jan has been there once or twice. Darcy has taken dining at Bonefish to another level. She’s been there probably half a dozen times since. She and her husband Mike absolutely love the place. They actually drive from the West side of town, where they reside, to the Waterfront, which is on the East side of town just to go to Bonefish.

Anyway, Bang Bang Shrimp is probably the most popular item on the Bonefish menu. Everyone loves their Bang Bang Shrimp. The secret is in the yummy sauce. The sauce kind of reminds me of the signature sauce, found in Honey Walnut Chicken at Fusa, but with a spicy kick to it. Darcy told me that she found a recipe online. This led me to my own search. Here’s what I found..

I found that the sauce consists mainly of three ingredients: mayonnaise, Thai Sweet Chili Sauce, and a few drops of Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce. How much of each ingredient you use will depend entirely on your taste buds. The simplicity of the sauce recipe is nice. However, from all the articles I’ve read online, most have failed at successfully duplicating the flavor of the famed Bang Bang Shrimp sauce.

I joked at Darcy that if she ever successfully duplicates the sauce, she could probably use it with everything. You could “bang bang” porkchops, “bang bang” chicken, and “bang bang” just about anything because it really is the sauce that makes the dish. The shrimp is just your run of the mill, garden variety battered and fried shrimp. Granted it is crispier than most, but the sauce is where the magic happens.

I’m not much of a cook, so I couldn’t really see myself toiling over the kitchen for hours mixing a bit more mayo and a bit more chili sauce just to get the flavor right. Surely there is an easier way to “bang bang” nirvana. Here’s a secret I will share with you: you can actually buy pre-made Bang Bang Sauce through the Dinni’s Select web site. I’ve not seen these carried at my local grocery store, but if I find it I will let you guys know. For now, I think it can only be purchased online.

Dinni’s Select offers a wide variety of delicious sauces for you to try. You can buy a three-jar gift pack and choose three different flavors. Or you can just get three jars of the Bang Bang Sauce.

May 27, 2007 | Posted by Ching under Flickr, Food

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How Lucky Am I

I have the craziest luck in the world. Last December Mo loaned me his Accounting book so I could use it for my Accounting class in the spring. Well, at the end of the semester, I completely forgot that it wasn’t my book either. I ended up taking the Mo’s book along with my other textbooks to buy back. I completely spaced out the fact that it wasn’t my book.

It wasn’t until almost a week later when it dawned on me that I needed to return the book, which I no longer had. I thought about my folly and pondered telling Mo what I’d done. That was option one. Option two involved buying the exact same book and just not telling Mo. I figured that he probably wouldn’t be able to tell that it wasn’t the book he loaned to me.

However, the risk of option two is the cost. Even a used copy of the textbook costs over a hundred bucks. In the meantime, while I was mulling over my options, Mo beat me to the punch. He asked me if I was finished with the book.

I finally had to come clean. I told him what happened and offered to give him the $50 that I got for the book during buy back. Unfortunately, it wasn’t his book. He completely spaced out that it wasn’t his when he loaned it to me. So now he had to return it to Dina, its rightful owner. I begged Mo to find out if Dina would be willing to accept the $50 in place of her book. He told me he would try to get her to accept my offer and get back with me the next day.

In the meantime, I scrambled for a back up plan. I had a feeling she probably would want her book back because Mo said she keeps all of her books. I searched everywhere and finally found the book on Amazon. Much to my amazement, I found someone willing to sell the exact same book — hard cover, US, 6th edition (not the soft cover, international version) — for less than $10. When Mo told me the next day that she really wanted her book back, I asked for her phone number so I could personally apologize for my flakiness and explain to her what happened.

So I contacted Dina and told her what I had done. I also explained to her that I was in the process of getting the exact same book to replace the one that I had lost (read: accidentally sold at buy back). I told her it might be two weeks because of media mail. The book actually arrived in the mail on Wednesday, less than week from when I ordered it, so that was really nice. How lucky is that? Not only did I find the book for less, it even arrived sooner than expected. When you think about it, I actually came out ahead. I got $50 for it at buy back and was able to buy the book for $10. So I unintentionally turned a $40 profit with $0 investment.

I was shared my crazy story to April and Corey at poker on Wednesday. April commented that I should just buy a bunch of books on the cheap and sell them all at buy back. Instictively, I agreed. It seemed like a good idea. However, upon further inspection, it really won’t work. Or at least there is more risk involved than I would care to take on.

For one, even if I could buy several books and sell them at buy back, it would seem really suspicious if I tried to sell back several copies of the exact same book or dozens of books that I wasn’t even enrolled in or have never taken. Secondly, new editions are released every time. Who hasn’t gotten screwed at buy back because the new edition came out and now your book is obsolete? If you end up buying several books in anticipation for buy back and then the new edition renders the books worthless. You lose money. Lastly, it always seems that when I plan or intentionally do something it doesn’t work out. My best laid plans are always foiled. So I’m better off just lucking out once in a while.

I wish I could have had some luck at poker that night, though. I got knocked out pretty early. Brian did really well, though. He ended up taking first and winning a free seat to the BCPT. He’s been doing pretty well at poker lately. All we have to work on now is his sportsmanship. =P

May 26, 2007 | Posted by Ching under Life, Poker

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Our Botanica Photos

May 22, 2007 | Posted by Ching under Flickr

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Sick and Dreaming

I wasn’t feeling well yesterday but went to work anyway. I probably shouldn’t have because today I’m all achey and not feeling good and my head hurts. Since I don’t like to take medicine (pill phobia), I just have to endure it. Although, I was smart enough to stay home today instead of going to work and being miserable and taking it out on everyone else.

Here it is two o’clock in the afternoon and I’m lstill laying in bed. I should get up and fix myself something to eat but, honestly, I’d rather not move. I must be really sick to shun food. I always eat, no matter how sick I get.

You know how people get sick and they lose weight because they don’t have any appetite? That doesn’t ever happen to me. When I get sick, I actually gain weight because I just stay home and fall into a sleep-eat-sleep-eat-more routine.

Then I was freaking out for a while, thinking there was something wrong with me because I still hadn’t received the results of my health screening from two weeks ago. The note I received said the results would be available on the web site in 48 hours. So I’m thinking there’s something seriously wrong with me.

Yesterday I received an email asking me to participate in another health screening. So I emailed back and told her that I had already been screened and that I am just waiting to receive my results back. The good news is there may not be anything wrong with me. The bad news is that I do have to go through the heath screening again because they somehow lost our blood samples. Thus, the delay in getting my results back.

Everyone who went on May 10 has to go through a do over. Which is really crummy for me because it took a lot to get my blood drawn the first time. I really hate getting my blood drawn and going through a health screening once a year is about all I can handle. Unfortunately, I have to go through it twice this year. They’re coming back to our building to complete the do overs next week so at least I’ve got a few days to muster up the courage to go through it again. Read more

May 22, 2007 | Posted by Ching under Life, Travel

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The Ring

I was going to title this post as “The Ring of Terror” but thought it overly dramatic for a post about birth control. As you all know Brian and I do not plan to have children in the near future. Actually, we don’t plan to have children in the far future either. Children are pretty much out of the question.

I have been on the Ortho Evra birth control patch for many years. Aside from it getting gunky, falling off on occasion, and square discoloration all over my body I really had no complaints. I used to get a three-month supply for only $40 through mail order. Not too bad.

However, last year they made a change so the cost almost doubled. Instead of $40, the cost went up to $70. So suddenly, all of the downsides of the patch which were not a big deal before were no longer acceptable. I finished out the rest of my year on the patch but Brian and I decided that we would explore other alternatives.

Oral contraceptives were out of the question because of my pill phobia. Even as small as the birth control pill is, I just can’t do it. I think it tastes bad (this is probably mostly psychological) and it makes me queasy.

I had heard of the ring before but I had never tried it because I thought it was weird. I mean, who wants to shove a foreign object in there? Anyway, at $40 for a three-month supply (like the patch used to be) and being non-oral, it seemed like a best alternative.

This is my first month (I’m on my third week, actually) on the ring and so far so good. Although, I have been reading some weird things about it. Some of the most common complaints include the ring unexpectedly falling out during intercourse or during regular day-to-day activities (which I dismissed as people just not inserting it properly or far enough), feminine itching, infections, mood swings, weight gain, nausea, and blood clots. None of these really bothered me. However, today I read that the blood clots have led to some fatalities. That’s pretty scary. Although, I doubt that the FDA would approve something that is bad for you. Read more

May 21, 2007 | Posted by Ching under Babies, Reviews, Sex, Travel

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She’s a Natural

Riverfest 2007 was super fun this year. Of course, it was more fun because I could actually participate in some of the festivities. It always coincides with finals week so in years past I’ve not been able to attend.

This year Brian and I went to the swing concert on Thursday night. The band, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, was amazing! They really entertained the crowd. Brian and I got to do some swing danging which is always a blast.

One of the older guys asked if I wanted a lesson. Not one to turn down a dance, I agreed to dance with him. He showed me some new stuff. While we were dancing he called out to Brian, “She’s a natural!” It was so much fun!

It has been a couple of years since Brian and I have actually gone out dancing so I was achey the next day, but it was well worth it! We need to do that again! =P

Yesterday I took a half day of vacation. Brian and I went to Botanica and then went to the Wichita Art Museum to participate in WAM gallery quest. It was funny watching the other people actually go to the outdoor sculptures.

I found a computer terminal at the Art Investigations Gallery and I just started looking stuff up. We actually found a couple of answers that way without physically inspecting the art installations. It was a shame that the computer didn’t have internet access. Otherwise, I could have looked up all of the answers! Give me the web and I can find anything! LOL.

After that I took Brian to Cafe Moderne for some gelato. Good stuff there. Then poker which was anti-climactic. I got knocked out way early and ended up waiting for Brian. They did start satellite sit-n-go tourneys which was nice. It gives you something to do while you wait for your buddies or, in my case, my husband.

Anyway, if you want to see pictures of some of the festivities feel free to check out the the photostream.

May 19, 2007 | Posted by Ching under Flickr

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The Best Day Ever

Friday, May 11, proved to be the best day ever! Craft posted the grades for our Friendly Cards case study as well as our final exam scores. We got another great score on our last case and I got a 98% on the final so that gave me an A for the class. Last semester I took four classes and ended up with three A’s and a B (in DS also known as Operations Management). The work load was just too much for me to handle.

This semester I took Brian’s advice and dropped to three classes. He was so right. Three classes is just enough course load so that I can meet my target graduation date and maintain good grades. Taking four graduate level courses in one semester was a crazy idea.

My Finance grade was the last one I was waiting for — all A’s this sem! Go me! And, for the first time in a really long time, I don’t have finals during Riverfest week; which means Brian and I can actually participate in some of the week’s festivities. So far I have talked him into attending the swing dance/concert with me and also going to the Botanica on Friday afternoon.

Besides the good news I received about my grades, I also did great at poker last night. Last night was the first Friday night Blue Collar Poker Tour event at APL. I was short-stacked the whole way but luck was on my side (must be the good mojo from the great news I received earlier in the day) because I managed to finish 2nd.

The tourney started at seven in the evening and we didn’t finish until well after midnight. That was a long time to play poker. I think I might’ve had a shot to win the big one but my opponent had my stack covered 3-to-1 so I couldn’t make a move. When it was time for heads up play, I couldn’t catch cards to save my life. The one time that I had him out-kicked our kickers didn’t play so we had to split the pot. I was totally worn out and finally just gave up. Went all in on a stupid hand just so the agony would be over, and Brian and I could finally go home and go to bed. That’s the main weakness I have when it comes to final table and heads up play — I don’t have endurance. I get bored. I get impatient. I do crazy things. And I get knocked out.

Taking home $100 for 2nd place wasn’t bad, though. Brian and I invested $20 to play ($10 each for chair rentals) and so that’s pretty good ROI when you think about it.

P.S. The Dill’s are in town for the week. We found out yesterday at poker because they were there. We wouldn’t have known otherwise because Dill changed his phone number. =P

We went to Becca’s graduation this morning. I’m really glad that we found out about it (although not until last night) and could be there to show our support. You can view the photos we took here.

Anyway, Friday was the best day I’ve had in a long time!

May 12, 2007 | Posted by Ching under Flickr, Poker, School

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The Holy Grail of Footwear

I bought three new pairs of shoes over the last week. This is amazing for someone like me who rarely shops. I wanted to blog about shoes today because I want to brag about this amazing deal I found. The shoes pictured on the left are a pair of Tribeca Get the Scoop sandals, $72.99 at Zappos. If you’re wondering why they’re pricey it’s because Tribecas are made by Kenneth Cole. Anyway, I was convinced that I could find them cheaper elsewhere on the web. Mission accomplished! I found the exact same shoes at Shoemall (through Amazon) for less than $25, with free shipping to boot! Can you believe it? Am I good or what?

Why the sudden shoe obsession? Well, shoes are an important part of our upcoming anniversary trip to Jamaica. I’ve read that shoes actually occupy the bulk of your luggage on these sort of trips. Even if you plan to pack light, somehow you end up having to bring several pairs of shoes. You’ll need shoes for horseback riding, water shoes for climbing the falls, beach sandals or flip flops for the beach, dressy shoes or sandals for fancy dinner night, sandals for your sundresses.. The list goes on and on and on. A lot of people will bring shoes for every outfit. On the other hand, Brian and I fully intend to accomplish our goal of packing light, so we plan to bring only a couple of pairs each. That got us thinking, could we find a single pair of shoes that would work for everything? Thus, the hunt for a pair of versatile shoes went…

The hunt began last weekend with trips to Payless, Shoe Carnival and Target. Payless and Shoe Carnival both had “buy one pair get the other pair for 50% off” (BOGO) sales going on. Brian and I tried our best to find versatile shoes for each other at one place so we could avail of the BOGO offer. Unfortunately for us, he couldn’t find shoes for himself at Shoe Carnival and I couldn’t find shoes for myself at Payless. We didn’t find anything at all that would work at Target so Target was immediately out of the running. Anyway, we still managed to take advantage of the BOGO offer because he found two shoes for himself at Payless and I found two shoes for myself at Shoe Carnival.

Brian’s versatile, all-purpose shoe find is a pair of black water clogs. They’re like Crocs but they’re made by Airwalk. The shoes can be worn as a slip on or with the attached back strap. He plans to wear the shoes for everything including horseback riding. He also plans to stretch the dress shoe rule at Le Gourmet by going to dinner wearing the water clogs. I’ve read in the Couples message board that this practice is frowned upon but a few have actually gotten away with it. Brian is not averse to going against the norm for the sake of packing light so he will try to do it. His other pair is a pair of canvas sneakers. He got them for no other purpose than the BOGO offer. Well, that and he’s wanted a pair of light canvas sneakers.

My versatile, all-purpose shoe find is Skechers Bikers Excursion. These sandals are the best. I plan on wearing them anytime I do any kind of walking on our trip, including horseback riding. I ended up getting a 5.5 size and they fit perfect. There was no break-in needed. The shoes felt great the second I put them on. I also walked a mile on the treadmill in these shoes to see if they would be uncomfortable at some point. That point never came.

The only downside to these shoes is that they look weird when worn with a swimsuit. So my second pair is a pair of Skechers sandals that I can wear with my swimsuits. It was tough convincing Brian to let me have my second pair because my first pair cost quite a bit more than we planned to spend on shoes originally. The BOGO offer helped, though. Anyway, I guess we didn’t completely accomplish our goal of finding the perfect pair. However, I think we came pretty close.

If we need to declare a winner of this shoe hunting contest, I’d have to concede that Brian wins this round. After all, he’s going to pass a pair of water clogs off as dress shoes. That’s going to be something to see. LOL.

While we’re no longer shopping for shoes (we certainly can’t afford to buy any more after this shopping spree), the perfect pair is still out there. Someday I will find it — the holy grail of footwear. But we’ll have to continue the hunt another time, when we are not so broke. =P

May 5, 2007 | Posted by Ching under Life, Reviews, Travel

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